Lentil Ragu – VeganMoFo Day 12

Today’s VeganMoFo prompt asks us about our Dream Holiday Destination. Well, there aren’t many places I wouldn’t want to travel to. I want to see the whole world! Of course, health, money, life…they all get in the way and I can’t, but a girl can dream right?

One place I have always wanted to visit is Italy – Naples would be a great visit, and as a history graduate, I would love to see Rome. So Italy is where I went with for my dish today.

I recently posted about my meal out at Zizzi’s where I had their lentil ragu and this inspired me to make a lentil ragu of my own. Warm and hearty, this dish is great as the nights draw in.

A mixture of dried herbs – basil, oregano, and rosemary – give an Italian taste to this sauce, and a splash of balsamic vinegar provides a sweet, sharp addition.

I use linguine for this but you could use any long pasta – tagliatelle would work great, or even just simple spaghetti!

You may experience variation in the time taken to cook your lentils, I’ve found depending on age and storage and just lentil variety they can take different times, so if you find the sauce dries out before your lentils are cooked just add a splash more water and continue!

Lentil Ragu

• Servings: 3
• Print

Ingredients

• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 carrots, diced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 50ml balsamic vinegar
• 125g dried brown lentils, rinsed
• 1 can chopped tomatoes
• 500ml vegetable stock
• 250g linguine (or however much you like to use)
• Salt + Pepper to season

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, fry the onion, garlic, and diced carrots in the olive oil until they begin to soften – about 5 minutes.
2. Add in the herbs and salt and pepper, and pour in the balsamic vinegar.
3. Let the balsamic vinegar cook off, and then add the lentils, chopped tomatoes, and vegetable stock.
4. Bring to a boil, cover, lower the heat, and simmer for 50 minutes – or until the lentils are cooked. Stir occasionally.
5. Meanwhile, cook the pasta to taste.
6. Once the pasta and lentils are all cooked, drain the pasta and stir it through the ragu.
7. Serve!

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